Daniel J. Foutz and Dr. Kevin Miller, Construction Management

Kevin Miller and I conducted a survey for the benefit of the Construction Management Department at Brigham Young University. The survey also benefitted two professional associations of the construction industry, namely, the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), and the Association of Building Contractors (ABC). The purposes of the survey were to: evaluate current use of software in the industry; gain information for seminars held by the AGC and ABC; determine the level of interest in a proposed graduate program for the Construction Management Department; and expand job opportunities for BYU’s construction management graduates and interns. In conducting the survey we ran into unexpected problems, and while some minor parts of the research project are yet unfinished, the survey itself has proved successful.

The survey began at the request of the Industry Advisory Council of the Construction Management Department. This Council consists of members of the construction industry and helps the Construction Management Program meet the current needs of the industry. The survey was given to 60 randomly selected contractors in the state of Utah who are members of the AGC and ABC. These two associations are the two largest professional associations for commercial construction contractors in the nation, and many individuals in the Industry Advisory Council are members of them.

The survey contained many questions about the types of software currently being used in the construction industry, how well the software works for construction companies, and what general concerns these companies have with their software. We asked about interest in enrollment in the proposed graduate program which is currently awaiting approval by the University. We tried to determine the interest of these companies in hiring an intern and receiving a graduate resume book from our department. For the AGC and ABC we gathered information for their annual seminars. The survey contained questions to find what seminar topics were the most popular and the price companies are willing to pay to attend them. We also asked about the most popular location, time of the year, and days of the week for these seminars.

While conducting the survey we ran into problems. The first problem was a poor response to the mailed survey. Only about 15% of the surveys were returned. We decided to telephone the companies that did not respond and ask the survey questions over the phone. Because of this, we had to edit parts of the survey to make it easier to answer verbally. Conducting the survey by telephone resulted in our second problem—how to contact the president and oftentimes owner of a construction company, especially on a Friday afternoon, which was the only time I was able to make phone calls. If the presidents were in their offices, they often did not have time to respond to the five minute survey. The answer to this problem was simple perseverance and much time was spent recalling companies to get the results needed. We also had to replace a few names on our list for companies which had gone out of business or would not take part in the survey at all. 100 Some final steps of the research project are still in process. One step is to try to publish some of the survey results in a professional construction journal. I ran into problems with this step as my faculty mentor has since stopped teaching at BYU and has transferred to Arizona State University. When school starts again and another faculty member takes his place, we will finish the report’s preparation and application for publishing. The direct statistical results of the survey are also going through some final editing and will short ly be made available on the Internet at http://www.et.byu.edu/tecmwww/cm/cm_home.html. This site can also be linked from http://www.et.byu.edu/tecm/cm/survey97.html, which contains a copy of the original survey.

From the information gathered we provided the AGC and ABC with results of the survey regarding seminar preferences. We found substantial evidence that companies preferred seminars held during the winter months and at the end of the week. The best location for every company was simply their local area. Pinpointing the optimum price for admission was harder, as everyone’s ideas varied widely. Recommended prices ranged from free for all members to hundreds of dollars per day. The professional associations would need to interpret those statistical results themselves and compare them with their own financial situations in regards to the seminars. Finally we ranked the seminar topics for them from most to least popular.

For the Construction Management Department we found a strong interest for interns and have recorded all names of interested companies. The survey provided beneficial information about current software use. We found the most popular types of software and how satisfied companies are with these softwares. From this we were able to compare and evaluate the types of software that are currently being used in classes taught in the Construction Management Program. We also discovered the leading concern of construction companies with their software is lack of training. This helped us to see just how important software training is in preparing construction management students for the job field. The Construction Management Department will now be able to adapt that training to better meet the industry’s current needs.

The survey turned out to be very successful and we met all of its objectives. Some answers came more clearly than others but all the information led to reasonable conclusions. The research has been challenging and rewarding. If some of the information and analysis from the survey is publishable, it will help to benefit other construction management schools, companies, and associations across the nation and better their education in the construction industry.